The ISCFC is all about reducing our individual and collective contributions to climate change.
But is climate change really happening? Is it mostly caused by human activity, including our production of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases?
In the United States and elsewhere, there are people who are not convinced by the science. But the great thing about science is that we use evidence to evaluate scientific questions. So what is the evidence related to climate change?
Are you or are you not convinced by the majority of climate scientists who say that climate change is real and largely human caused? Why are you convinced/not convinced? What evidence might change your mind one way or the other?
Is Climate Change Real & Human-Caused? >
Climate Change is Real and Harmful
Most climate scientists agree the main cause of the current global warming trend is the expansion of the "greenhouse effect," which is warming that results when the atmosphere traps heat radiating from Earth toward space. Gases that contribute to the greenhouse effect include water vapor, methane, nitrous oxide, and carbon dioxide.
Water Vapor: The most abundant greenhouse gas. It increases as the Earth's atmosphere warms, but so does the possibility of clouds and precipitation.
Carbon Dioxide: A minor but very important component of the atmosphere, carbon dioxide is released through natural processes such as respiration and volcano eruptions and through human activities such as deforestation, land use changes, and burning fossil fuels.
Methane: A hydrocarbon gas produced both through natural sources and human activities, including the decomposition of wastes in landfills, agriculture, and especially rice cultivation.
Nitrous Oxide: A powerful greenhouse gas produced by soil cultivation practices, especially the use of commercial and organic fertilizers, fossil fuel combustion, nitric acid production, and biomass burning.
We know that climate change is real and that it's harmful because the planet's average surface temperature has risen about 2.0 degrees Fahrenheit (1.1 degrees Celsius) since the late 19th century.